The executive powers of the County shall be vested in the County Administrator who shall, with the assistance of the various County Department heads, be responsible for the enforcement of this Charter, the County's legislative actions pursuant to Article
II, and any General Laws applicable thereto.
It is the intent of Article
II of this Charter to confer on the five members who perform the legislative functions of County Commissioners broad general legislative and investigative powers as are germane to the exercise of their legislative powers, but at the same time, by virtue of Article
III, to retain to the Executive Branch of County government full control over County administration and of the administration of County services provided for in this Charter. Accordingly, this Charter seeks to establish clear lines between Article
II legislative and Article
III executive functions as follows: the five members who perform the legislative functions are to deal with individual Article
III County employees only through the executive officials responsible for the overall executive management of the County's affairs as specified in this Article
III. All routine contact with Article
III County employees, all actions and communications concerning the administration of the County's government and provisions of services shall be from the legislative branch to and through the County's executive officials.
Nothing in the foregoing nor in this Charter shall be construed
to prohibit informal, non-directive conversations of County Commissioners
with County officials, nor the inquiry by the legislative branch into
any act or problem of County administration. Any of the five members
who perform the functions of County Commissioners may require a report
on any aspect of the government of the County at any time by making
a request therefor to the County Administrator. The five members may,
by majority vote, require the County Administrator to appear before
them sitting as a committee of the whole and to bring before them
such records and reports and such officials and employees of the County
as the five members shall deem necessary to insure clarification of
any legislative matter under study. The five may further vote to establish
any number of its members as an ad hoc committee to consult with the
executive branch to study any matter and to report thereon.
Unless the five members who perform the functions of County
Commissioners vote to appoint another; the County Administrator shall
be the person then serving as Nantucket Town Administrator or Executive
Secretary. The person so appointed shall, by education, experience
and ability, be qualified to perform the duties established for the
position. Such person need not be a resident of the County at the
time of appointment but shall become a resident during the period
of service to the County.
The County Administrator shall be responsible to the five members who perform the functions of County Commissioners, for the efficient administration of the County government and the proper implementation of legislation adopted pursuant to Article
II. The County Administrator shall have all the powers, rights and duties designated by the five members performing the functions of County Commissioners or as commonly associated with the office of chief administrative officer of a local government unit; and, in particular, in exercising the County's Article
III powers, the County Administrator:
(a)
may require reports from and may examine the records, accounts
and operations of any agency of County government and shall recommend
whatever actions or programs are deemed necessary or desirable for
the County, the welfare of its residents and of visitors to the Islands;
(b)
shall appoint the heads of all county administrative departments (other than those who are elected) with the advice and consent of the five members who perform the functions of County Commissioners, and shall appoint all members of County committees and other County administrative personnel whose appointment is not prescribed elsewhere in this Charter; and may, except as may be provided by the General Laws or any applicable civil service regulations, at the Administrator's discretion remove, suspend or otherwise discipline any such appointee subject to the provisions of Article
IV of this Charter; and may, subject to any applicable provisions of the General Laws, delegate to any department head the County Administrator's powers of appointment and removal of departmental employees;
(c)
shall coordinate, with the Director of County Finance, the preparation,
for submission to the five members performing the functions of County
Commissioners, of a proposed annual operating budget and a capital
budget, and any proposal for budget amendment; and shall establish
the schedules and procedures to be followed by all County departments
and agencies in connection therewith and shall coordinate, with the
Director of County Finance, all phases of the budgetary process throughout
each fiscal year;
(d)
may be present at all meetings of the five members who perform
the functions of County Commissioners and may participate in all deliberations,
without the right to vote;
(e)
shall insure through the office of the various County department
heads adequate supervision, direction and control of all County administrative
departments and the care and maintenance of all County properties,
institutions and agencies;
(f)
shall organize the work of the County departments, subject to
this Charter, the General Laws, and any administrative code adopted
by the five members performing the functions of County Commissioners,
and make any recommendations pertaining thereto;
(g)
shall review, analyze and forecast trends of County services
and programs of all County departments and other agencies and make
reports and recommendations thereon;
(h)
shall negotiate contracts for the County with the approval of
the five members performing the functions of County Commissioners,
including any County employment and union contracts;
(i)
shall assure that all terms and conditions imposed in favor
of the County or its inhabitants in any statute, franchise or contract
are faithfully kept and performed;
(j)
may order any County agency or department head to undertake
tasks for any other County agency, on a temporary basis, if deemed
necessary for proper and efficient administration;
(k)
shall make recommendations to the five members who perform the
functions of County Commissioners for actions they might take for
the improvement of the County and for the welfare of its residents
and visitors to the Islands; and
(l)
shall perform any other duties as may be required by this Charter,
by County ordinance or by majority vote of the five members performing
the functions of County Commissioners.
The following administrative positions and offices, all holders of which shall be charged with the implementation of County legislation adopted pursuant to Article
II and with the enforcement of the laws of the Commonwealth, shall be included in the Executive Branch:
(a)
County Sheriff, Register of Probate, Clerk of the
Courts & Register of Deeds.
Nothing in this Charter shall alter, change or affect the positions
of Sheriff, Register of Probate, Clerk of the Courts or Register of
Deeds, who shall continue to remain elected County officials and shall
perform their duties in accordance with the general laws of the Commonwealth.
Such officials shall provide such reports to the five members who
perform the functions of County Commissioners or the County Administrator
and shall coordinate through the County Administrator with other county
departments as necessary or desirable for the County to exercise the
powers and perform the duties given by this Charter.
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(b)
Clerk to the Five members performing the functions
of County Commissioners.
The Clerk to the five members performing the functions of County
Commissioners shall be the Clerk of the Nantucket Superior Court.
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(c)
Other County Officials.
Nantucket County offices which have counterpart Town offices
as part of the Town of Nantucket shall be deemed to be filled ex officii by the person holding the counterpart Town
office, including:
The Director of County Finance who shall be that person duly
appointed and serving as Director of Municipal Finance for the Town
of Nantucket.
The County Treasurer who shall be that person duly appointed
and serving as the Town Treasurer of the Town of Nantucket.
The County Clerk created and established in Section 3.5 of this
Charter shall be that person duly elected or appointed and serving
as the Town Clerk of the Town of Nantucket. The Assistant County Clerk
shall be that person duly elected or appointed and serving as the
Assistant Town Clerk of the Town of Nantucket.
County Counsel shall be that person duly appointed and serving
as Town Counsel for the Town of Nantucket.
The Department of County Finance shall be headed by the Director
of County Finance. The Director may draw upon as needed the personnel
and equipment of the office of Municipal Finance of the Town of Nantucket,
and shall be responsible for the management of all financial aspects
of County government, including:
(a)
the preparation of financial statements and reports, including
periodic reporting to appropriate agencies on the status of accounts;
(b)
the receipt of all funds due the County or to be held by the
County for other agencies;
(c)
the management, investment and control of County funds;
(d)
the expenditure of all such funds;
(e)
the preparation of budgets for all County departments;
(f)
the assistance to all other County departments and officials
in any matter related to financial affairs;
(g)
the supervision of all purchases of goods, materials, supplies
and equipment and of contract administration, and to the extent that
the Director deems necessary, maintenance of inventory controls;
(h)
supervision of all data processing facilities; and
(i)
such other matters as may be determined necessary by the five
members performing the functions of County Commissioners.
There is hereby established the position and office of County
Clerk, separate and distinct from the Clerk of the Courts and Clerk
to the five members performing the function of County Commissioners,
with the duties set forth in this Charter. The County Clerk shall
have jurisdiction over all County records and, unless otherwise provided
by law not to be a public record, shall assure that the same are available
to the general public to the same extent as records of the Town of
Nantucket. The County Clerk shall have jurisdiction over and may impress
the County seal.
The Personnel Board of the County of Nantucket shall consist
of those persons then serving as the Personnel Board of the Town of
Nantucket in accordance with Chapter 264 of the Acts of 1979, which
the General Laws of the Commonwealth; provided, however, that notwithstanding
such law or any law to the contrary, the employees of the Sheriff's
department shall be served by such statewide sheriffs' personnel board
as may hereafter be designated by the General Court for sheriffs'
employees statewide. Until such agency is designated, the five members
serving the functions of County Commissioners shall act as the sheriff's
personnel board for the employees of the County Sheriff's department.